MANILA – The Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) have received a unified manifesto from the country’s sugar industry calling for stricter regulation of artificial sweeteners and tighter measures on existing policies for sugar substitutes, which are steadily reducing demand for locally produced cane sugar.

The manifesto, received by the SRA on Friday, January 30, and formally forwarded to the DA, was signed by major sugar federations from Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao, along with sugar millers, refiners, and allied industry groups—an unusually broad show of consensus in a sector often marked by competing interests.

The issue first surfaced in 2024, when the DA and SRA flagged the growing influx of sugar substitutes as a threat to domestic sugar demand. Under the leadership of DA Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. and the SRA Board, a policy framework was initiated to closely monitor the importation of sugar substitutes and strengthen data on volumes and market impact.

“After various consultative meetings with sugar industry stakeholders initiated by the DA and the SRA, the issue on artificial sweeteners has brought the sugar industry to a momentous unity,” Secretary Tiu Laurel said. “We have received today, through the SRA, a manifesto asking government to regulate the importation and use of artificial sweeteners and other sugar substitutes. The DA and SRA will surely work on this, as this is an extraneous force affecting the demand for locally produced sugar.”

SRA Administrator Pablo Luis Azcona highlighted the significance of the industry’s unified stance, noting that the issue had been raised with local governments, including the provincial government of Negros Occidental, a key sugar-producing region.

“We have brought this issue to the attention of all the stakeholders involved, and after meetings with leaders, I am very happy that everyone has come together for this common cause,” Azcona said. “It is probably one of the few times the stakeholders have one common stand, and the SRA will surely take action.”

For the DA and SRA, the manifesto signals mounting pressure to balance consumer trends, food manufacturing needs, and the sustainability of the domestic sugar industry, placing sugar substitutes squarely on the government’s agricultural policy agenda.